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Gun Violence

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What does the scientific evidence tell us about the effects of gun policies? Part of the RAND Gun Policy in America initiative, this report assesses the available evidence for the effects of commonly proposed gun laws on firearm deaths, violent crime, suicide, the gun industry, hunting and sport shooting, and other outcomes.

RAND's Gun Policy in America initiative provides information on what scientific research can tell us about the effects of gun laws. Our goal is to establish a shared set of facts that will improve public discussions and support the development of fair and effective gun policies.

Explore Gun Violence

Terrorism has become an internet-enabled abuse—incited by, propagated by, and sometimes organized and concealed by online activity. Who should be held accountable for abusive content, the author or the publisher? And what role should the government play in regulating it?

More high-quality research is needed to craft policies that could contribute to reducing gun injuries, deaths, and violence. There are many ways Congress could help build a robust and transformative gun policy research enterprise. One is to appropriate funds to support a diverse portfolio of studies.

The National Collaborative on Gun Violence Research, a philanthropic fund created to support scientific research on gun policy, today released its first request for proposals to support up to $10 million in projects during its first grantmaking cycle. The deadline for initial submissions is February 4.

RAND serves as an objective source of facts that help inform the world's most pressing policy debates. When decisions are based on the best evidence, that's when public policy can have a positive impact on people's lives. We're highlighting the 10 research projects that RAND.org readers found most engaging this year.

As part of the RAND Corporation's Gun Policy in America initiative, the authors use simulations to assess the performance of a wide range of statistical models used to estimate the effects of state gun policies on firearm deaths.

The National Collaborative on Gun Violence Research, a philanthropic fund that will support scientific research on gun policy, announced that it will release its first request for proposals in early January 2019 and award up to $10 million in research funding during its first round of grantmaking.

The three most lethal domestic terrorist attacks since 9/11 were carried out with high-capacity semiautomatic weapons. None of the attackers were under 21 or were stoppable through criminal background checks. Restrictions on sales of semiautomatics would make it much harder for terrorists to obtain their most effective means of killing.

Both sides of the gun policy debate agree on what the objectives of any policy should be. But they disagree over which policies would best achieve those goals. Current evidence for or against most gun proposals is weak, contradictory, or nonexistent. Only research can show what does—and doesn't—work.

This issue spotlights RAND's Gun Policy in America initiative and RAND's evaluation of Housing for Health, a Los Angeles County program that has moved some of its most chronically homeless and vulnerable residents into permanent housing.

Organizers who want to bring about social change would do well to look to Florida farmworkers. They took on the low wages, physical abuse, and vulnerability that have long characterized agricultural labor in the United States—and won, changing the culture for the better.

RAND has been selected to help oversee a philanthropic fund that will support high-quality research on issues related to gun violence. Over the next five years, research sponsored by the National Collaborative on Gun Violence Research will seek data-driven answers on the causes and patterns of gun-related violence in America.

As debate continues to rage over the causes and prevention of gun violence, it's worth asking how science can help lawmakers and the public resolve longstanding disagreements that have stood in the way of solutions.

Gun policy debates appear to be grounded in disagreement about the effects of policies, not what policies should try to achieve. This suggests an important role for the scientific study of gun laws, especially where evidence is weak.

The views of experts have an important influence on the gun policy debate. Results from a survey of experts with diverse views suggest they have similar objectives—reducing suicide and homicide rates—but disagree about which policies they believe would achieve them.

There are significant gaps in the available research on the effects of gun policies. However, the strongest evidence suggests laws aimed at preventing children from accessing guns would reduce firearm self-harm, and unintentional injuries and deaths among children.

Changes to gun policies in Australia, Switzerland, and Israel led to marked shifts in gun ownership rates. What can those experiences tell us about the impact of gun prevalence on suicide and violent crime?

One of the largest-ever studies of U.S. gun policy finds there is a shortage of evidence about the effects of most gun laws, although researchers from the RAND Corporation found there is some persuasive evidence about the effects of several common gun policies. RAND's sweeping Gun Policy in America initiative also evaluated the views of gun policy experts with opposing perspectives on the likely effects of gun laws to identify where compromise might be possible.

As part of the RAND Gun Policy in America initiative, experts with diverse gun policy views were surveyed on how they predicted specific gun laws would affect outcomes, such as violent crime, suicide, and participation in hunting and sport shooting. This comparison tool shows where these experts agree and disagree.

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Researcher Spotlight

Senior Statistician

Beth Ann Griffin is a senior statistician at the RAND Corporation. Her research has largely focused on causal effects estimation when using observational data. Her substantive research has primarily fallen into three areas: (1) substance abuse treatment for adolescents, (2) the impact of…

Associate Policy Researcher

Samuel (Sam) Peterson is an associate policy researcher in the Behavioral and Policy Sciences Department at the RAND Corporation. He has broad interests in topics within and outside of criminal justice, with prior research experience in gun violence prevention, sexual assault at American…

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